The Need to Distinguish Moral and Non-Moral Standards

 Different societies have different moral beliefs and that our beliefs are deeply
influenced by our own culture and context
 Some values do have moral implications while others don’t
 Example: Wearing of hijab by Muslim women and Wester countries wearing daring
dresses
 Different cultures = different moral standards
 What is a matter of moral indifference, that is, a matter of taste in one culture may be
a matter of moral significance in another
 Imposing one’s culture to another results in clash in cultural values and beliefs (i.e.
religious violence)
● Understanding the difference of moral and non-moral standards can be a
solution to this conundrum
Non-Moral Standards Moral Standards
We have NO RIGHT to Common Moral Ground FORCE others to act
impose on others accordingly

Differences Between Moral and Non-Moral Standards

Moral Standard
● Norms which we have about the types of actions which we believe to be
morally acceptable and morally unacceptable
● Deal with matters which can either seriously harm or seriously benefit human
beings
● Validity comes from the line of reasoning that was taken to back or support
them, thus not able to be formed or changed by particular bodies of authority
● Promote “the good” and welfare of well-being
● Norms (gen. rules of actions and behaviors) + Values (enduring beliefs about
what is good and desirable or not) = Moral Standards
● Equate with moral values and moral principles
● Rules – stabilizing force that enhances the survivability of individuals, families
and nations
 ● Moral development of young people depends on the ethical capacities of the
adults who interact with them on a daily basis
Characteristics:
1. Deal with matters that we think can seriously injure or benefit humans
2. Not established or changed by the decisions of authoritative individuals or body
3. Overriding – they take precedence on other standards and considerations, especially
of self-interest
4. Based on impartial considerations (fair and just)
5. Associated with special emotions and vocabulary

Non-Moral Standard
● Rules that are unrelated to moral or ethical considerations
● Not necessarily linked to morality or by nature lack ethical
sense
● Basic examples include rules of etiquette, fashion standards, rules in
games, and various house rules
● Standards by which we judge what is good or bad and right or wrong in a non-
moral way
● Examples include standards of etiquette (good or bad), the law (right or
wrong), standards of aesthetics (whether art is good or rubbish)
● Matters of taste or preference
● Violation of these does not cause any threat to human beings

Etiquette – norms that correct conduct in polite society or more generally to any special
code of social behavior or courtesy
Statuses – laws enacted by legislative bodies; make up a large part of the law

Professional Codes of Ethics

● Rules that are supposed to govern the conduct of members of a given
profession
● Lies somewhere between etiquette and law
 Moral Standard Non-Moral Standard
 Do not harm innocent people  Do not text while driving
 Do not kill  Do not talk when your mouth is full

Moral Agency
● A being capable of moral agency is one who possesses the means of judging rightly
and power to act; accordingly, but whether he will do so or not, depends on the
voluntary exercise of his faculties

Moral Agent
● is a being that is “capable of acting with reference to right and wrong”
● is anything that can be held responsible for behavior or decisions
● “It is moral agents who have rights and responsibilities because it is
them whom we take to have choices and the power to choose
● is an intelligent being who has the power of choosing and scope to act
according to his choice
● one whom the Supreme Governor has given a cognizable law, with its
proper sanction, by which to regulate his volitions and actions
● who is placed in circumstances which present no physical obstruction,
either to obedience or disobedience
● does not necessarily mean they are successfully making moral
decisions; it means that they are in a category that enables them to be
blamed
● held responsible for their decisions and behaviors, whether good or bad
● must be a living creature, as they must be able to comprehend abstract
moral principles and apply them in decision making
● must have “self-consciousness, memory, moral principles, other values
and the reasoning faculty, which allows him to devise plans for achieving
his objectives to weigh alternatives”
Moral Action
● is action which springs from choice and is not necessitated either by
mental propulsions or external circumstance: intelligent, free, and
accountable

Moral Dilemmas
● is a conflict in which you have to choose between two or more actions and have moral
reasons for choosing each action
● Conflict – common to the two well-known cases
● In each case, an agent regards herself as having moral reasons to do each of two
actions, but doing both is not possible
Crucial Features:
● the agent is required to do each of two or more actions
● the agent can do each of the actions
● but the agent cannot do both or all of the actions

A Moral Dilemma is a Situation where:

1. You are presented with two or more actions, all of which you have the
ability to perform
2. There are moral reasons for you to choose each of the actions
3. You cannot perform all of the actions and have to choose which action,
or actions when there are three or more choices, to perform.

● Someone or something will suffer no matter what choice you make

Three Levels of Moral Dilemmas

1. Individual
● conflict arrives when a person is asked to choose between two important
values for him or her for example choosing between one’s duties to his or her
family, loved ones or for another person
 ● Example: A father giving promise to his kid that he will play with him after work
but on his way home, encounters someone in need

2. Organizational
● encountered by institutions, business or organizations in their decision-making
process, at this level, the organizations’ experiences usually affect more than
one person, and they can be part of the internal group or an external
stakeholder
● Example: As a doctor handling a comatose patient and severely injured
persons from an accident and is left whether he saves one life and many lives
3. Structural
● affect a network of institutions and operative theoretical paradigms like
universal care, juvenile laws, and immigration; this type of dilemma can affect a
community and even a society at large
● Example: A politician promises an indigenous group to preserve their kind if
they support him and on the other hand promises a mining company to support
them with their endeavors if they voted for him. If he won, he will be left to
choose which one will he do as a moral agent